Family food - Gnocchi

There are 3 indisputable facts about Gnocchi:

1. No living person knows how to pronounce the word "gnocchi".*
2. Historically, we KNOW there must (surely?) have been at least three more vowels in there.*
3. It can be made at home. You don't even have to have Italian ancestry.

* Not necessarily actual facts, as such.

I've found quite a few gnocchi recipes online and in books at home - even in the 9-12 months section of a baby cookery book. For my 10 month chunk of a Bairn, I halved the final lumps when they were cooked, I'm always paranoid about choking! But I've since found a more baby friendly shape - and will describe that method instead. The final pictures do not correspond with the method! You'll have to use you beautiful imaginations until I make it again and take more photos.

Ingredients

• 6oz diced white potatoes (7oz if baking them)
• 4oz diced sweet potatoes or butternut squash (5oz if baking)
• 6 tablespoon of plain flour
• Egg yolk
• Seasonings optional - pinches of nutmeg, black pepper, cinnamon (salt if not for a child under a year old)

Method

1. Cook your veg first. Either steam them for 15 minutes (until tender); OR bake them whole in an oven at 180 degrees C, for an hour or so. If you have the time to bake, your gnocchi will be much lighter and easier to handle as a dough.
2. Mash potatoes etc together in a flat bottomed bowl.
3. Stir in flour, egg yolk and seasonings. Add more flour or water as required until you have an easy to handle, light dough.
4. Make into teaspoon sized dumplings, press with fork so they're flattened and grooved (ie not what's in my photos!), easier for a wee one to handle.
5. Bring a large pan to the boil.
6. Pop about 8 dumplings in at a time, once they're done they'll rise to the top. Takes a couple of minutes.
7. Serve with chopped tomato, peas, spinach, cheese, pesto - whatever you fancy.

mashing it up....

Aaaaaargh! I've created a monster!!

Not how yours should look! More disc-like with ridges, for babies. 

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